Rescuing apes from conflict requires more flexibility in CITES rules

May 2003

By Christine Wolf, Director of Government and International Affairs, The Fund for Animals

The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) governs the trade of certain wildlife species amongst its 163 member nations. Primates are an important focus of CITES, specifically as it relates to orphans of the bushmeat trade and sanctuaries. The current constructs of the Treaty make it very difficult for apes to be moved from a conflict area to another country because of the time involved in paperwork processing. When apes are in a sanctuary that is threatened by civil war or other conflicts, the national governments are often in an extreme state of disarray and unable to process CITES export requests in a manner quick enough to ensure the safety of the animals in question. The CITES authority of Kenya is asking the CITES Secretariat to consider issuing written permission for the export of apes in need of rescue when the removal of the animals is necessary to ensure their safety. This would be done on a case-by-case basis and the CITES authorities of the rescuing nation would be the temporary custodians of the apes, a designation necessary to prevent smuggling and permit laundering. The rescued apes would be placed in a suitable sanctuary until they can be safely returned to their original caretakers. The Standing Committee of CITES considered the resolution from Kenya at its 49th meeting in April 2003. The CITES Secretariat was hesitant to advise parties on this matter, fearing that by doing so they would be condoning the contravention of the treaty. They instead opted to ask parties to inform the secretariat when they have rescued apes from conflict areas, in an attempt to “share information.” This action at the Standing Committee meeting does little or nothing to address the problems, but parties being faced with these challenges are committed to finding a solution.